Yoga Relieves Stress and Anxiety

To the man or woman in the street, you could add depression to stress and anxiety, they appear to be similar in some ways and some problems can be linked.

At sometimes in our life we all suffer from both stress and anxiety, the degree of which differs from person to person, as does the degree of suffering. We can even suffer from depression, often without realizing it.

Yoga relieves Stress and Anxiety, as you will see.

What do we mean by Stress

We all know that stress in a severe form can overwhelm us, this can then lead to being depressed or suffering from anxiety. Whilst we all know what it is like to feel stressed, it is difficult to put a definition on what stress actually means.

People can report feeling stressed when multiple competing demands are placed on them.

The feeling of being stressed can be triggered by an event that makes you feel frustrated or nervous. We could be talking about a number of situations that put pressure on us:

You have an important meeting at work: guess what, you over sleep the alarm or the children are running late for school, when you finally get in the car and begin the drive to work, there is traffic everywhere.

Deadlines change: you have been given a problem to sort out at work, it is not easy but you are coping, until the completion date is brought forward by a few weeks.

Both the above are two of the many situations that people find themselves in, often on a regular basis, when they do they can get stressed, or suffer with stress.

What do we mean by Anxiety

If a person is suffering from depression they have a feeling of being lethargic, and feel that doing anything is too much trouble. Anxiety however makes them nervous, jumpy and in a fearful state.

Anxiety is a feeling of fear, worry, or unease.

The problem with anxiety is that it is the fear of the unknown. Whilst it is easy to name the problem as anxiety disorder, it does appear in many different ways.

Psychiatrists believe that the root cause of anxiety is depression, as people who are depressed often experience anxiety. The two go together like strawberries and cream.

Relieving Stress

If you look for a medical definition of stress, you will not find one. Both medical and health care professionals often disagree whether stress is the reason for the problems or as a result of them.

This makes it difficult for you to work out what the problem is, or how to combat it. Whatever you think, it is possible that you could manage stress better by:

Learning to manage external pressures, do not let them get to you, this will reduce the pressure and thus the stress.

Try to overcome your emotions, this will enable you to cope better with situations that would normally cause you stress.

Relieving Anxiety

Anxiety can disappear when the cause of it fades away. One example is that you can be late for a train, so you become anxious in case you miss it, as it is the last one of the day. When you arrive at the station, the train is late and you can board. You breathe a sigh of relief as you settle in your seat, anxiety gone.

If the anxiety lingers, as it often does, as the problem is deeper than just possibly missing a train, it can make it difficult to enjoy life, due to the anxiety. Early steps to obtaining relief require measures which will form new mental and physical habits.

There are a number of ways in which this can be done, these can include changing the way that you do things, which cause you to worry and lead to stress.

Altering your lifestyle by:

Not drinking Coffee

Reducing your intake of alcohol

Reducing your intake of sugar and starchy foods.

Natural stress reducers include.

Bananas

Dark Chocolate

Nuts

Yoga – how it can help

If you learn to practice yoga it can effectively relieve stress, it also eases both the symptoms of anxiety and depression. Yoga exercises transfer focus and attention to the body and breathing, this releases physical tension, while helping to control anxiety.

Whilst our bodies are designed to heal naturally, this process is stopped by the stresses of our normal daily lives. When you are practicing yoga, the stresses are dissolved during this time, it is not uncommon for the effects of the practice to last for a number of hours afterwards.

Whilst today yoga is not uncommon, a large majority of people are still not using it to relieve their tension. Many gym’s offer yoga classes, but it is still not accepted as a form of treatment.

If you are living a life full of pressure, and not doing anything about it, may I suggest that you seriously consider giving yoga a thought. Just a few simple exercises could make all the difference.

Two Common Stress Occasions

Children’s Parties

Those of us with children are familiar with our offspring, saying but Freddie/Rosie are having a birthday party why can’t I? Even worse when they return from one and tell you how fantastic it was and how cool the birthday child’s parents are.

This of course gives you stress before you start, so what do you? Plan and budget for the occasion. A good party is well planned, not a reason for a second mortgage.

If you can, try to recall a really good party that you attended, use this as a base for an idea but do not copy it.

The first and possibly most important part is cost, set a budget that you can afford, then ensure that you stick with it.

Can your friends and family help you to plan the day? Do you know someone who is able to provide the music, does anyone have access to a karaoke machine, is anyone an amateur magician, the thoughts are numerous. To keep costs down try to borrow or gently persuade people to do the gig for free.

Keep the food bill down, if possible choose a time of day when people will already have eaten, then you need only provide snacks and nibbles. If you can make most of the food yourself, this also keeps costs down.

Whilst it is a good idea to have a theme for the party, beware the budget, keep it simple, use balloons and similar items to decorate the room.

The aim of the day is for those attending to have fun and to enjoy themselves, for you to keep within the budget and have a happy child when all the guests have gone home.

Shopping

To some people this may seem a strange subject that can cause stress to others it is possibly the most stressful day of the week.

When I go shopping, the first thing I do is plan the day and time, this usually stops me from having to fight my way through crowds of other shoppers, with their overloaded trolleys of unhealthy food, surrounded by a seeming multitude of children. Why is it that other people’s children cannot behave when they are out, when yours are perfect!.

Planning the day and time will also, hopefully, mean that there will be room in the car park.

That is the first point, if possible leave any children at home, this will reduce the possible stress immediately. Do have a shopping list, which is within your budget, and stick to it.

What you must avoid is an overspend, as this will cause more stress later when you do not have enough money left for other essential items.

Leave time when you get home for a few simple yoga breathing exercises, to relieve the tension, (just a thought)

Conclusion

Stress and anxiety can be helped by practicing a few simple yoga exercises, give it a try you might be pleasantly surprised.

3 Comments for “Yoga Relieves Stress and Anxiety”

Hello Stuart, awesome post!!! I deal with depression and stress a lot in my life, and I have been considering yoga at times. I also need to cut back on the alcohol as well. Shopping and parties are also great for dealing with stress like you have mentioned. Thanks again, and continue to do what you do!!!